The overall objective of this proposal is to develop a reliable and reproducible methodology for supplying live, healthy loliginid squids for neuroscience research. The squid species are Loligo pealei, Loligo plei and Lolliguncula brevis, and they will be drawn from wild and laboratory-reared stocks. All three species are found year-round in the Gulf of Mexico offshore from Galveston Island. The specific goal is to have a continuous year-round source of one or more of these species by either (1) rearing squids from eggs to sexually mature adults, (2) growing half-grown squids to adult size in the laboratory or (3) capturing and maintaining adult squids. We intend to grow species of the genus Loligo from hatchlings to full adult size in large volume closed-system tanks (1500 liters and 10,000 liters) on a diet of wild-caught and laboratory-cultured live food organisms. In close association with the work of squid culture, we will rear to adult size the many small wild-caught Loligo and Lollicuncula brevis that presently make up a majority of our captured live animals. We will test in the first year a lampara net and purse seine in order to increase our catch per unit effort of large Loligo pealei and Loligo plei. Catches of live Lolliguncula brevis may be improved as we test larger trawl nets. With the addition of a broad program of squid culture we will improve our closed artificial seawater systems by rigid control of water quality and the further reduction of fin damage. A separate aim is to construct one of our standard 1500 liter squid maintenance systems at a distant neuroscience research laboratory and develop an overland transport system that permits the delivery of uninjured squids. The waters near Galveston Island provide abundant copepods, mysids, shrimps, fishes and other marine organisms that we can use for squid food. We will also provide laboratory-reared copepods, cladocerans, penaeid and palaemonid shrimps, and larval fishes as foods for squid culture.